Sky Activities for Kids

Night and day, the sky offers plenty of inspiration for a child. Simple activities like cloud spotting or stargazing for children can encourage a love of nature, give a budding artist some fresh ideas, or motivate a future astronomer. Plus, sky activities are among the easiest of all kids’ pastimes for a parent to set up.

Below, we’ve collected some fun, simple sky activities for kids to try – all you need is for the weather to co-operate!

Cloudspotting sky activities for kids

Wait for a day when there are some clouds in the sky, then take a blanket, paper, pens or pencils, and something flat for your kids to draw on to a park – or your garden if you have one.

Lie on your back and as the clouds drift by make up a picture: it can be animal, an object, a person, or anything you can imagine. Then try and draw what you saw.

Next, you could play a game. Each player picks a cloud and draws it as accurately as possible. Then the players swap pieces of paper. Finally, each player tries to turn the cloud drawing into whatever object, animal or situation it looks most like.

When you get indoors, try reading together about clouds – find out what it is that causes them to form, the different types, and why they rain.

Another indoor project might be to make your own clouds out of balls of cotton wool: glue them to blue paper to make a skyscape, or attach them to bits of string to hang them around the house. Don’t worry about stains: we have a guide to removing glue from clothes here on the site.

Star activities for kids on the ground

There’s so much to learn about the stars in the night sky! You don’t have to keep your kids up late to teach them, either. Get them thinking about the galaxy with the star projects for kids below.

Borrow a book from the library about the night sky for kids to learn about constellations. Using pebbles, beads, or any small items, try and make copies of constellations on the floor.

Constellations are often named after objects, animals, or people – try drawing some of the constellations, then sketching their namesake around them.

Keep an eye on the news for potential star gazing events! Head outside on the right date to watch meteor showers together, spot planets, or see the moon at its best.

These are just a couple of ideas to spark your kids’ imaginations. Find even more fun nature-inspired activities to try with them here.

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